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News Ticker from FNC

Monday, March 02, 2009

Like there aren't better things to do ...

"A German lawmaker proposed on Monday a novel and high-tech way of dealing with the menace of dog poo on the streets: DNA testing to identify the canine culprit and fine its owner.Peter Stein, a conservative politician in eastern Germany, told AFP that under his proposal, officials would test the excrement and then match it up to the offending dog using a DNA database of all pooches.German dog owners are fined 30-40 euros (40-50 dollars) if they fail to clean up after their pets, but very few are caught, with only four fines given out in Stein's hometown of Rostock -- human population 200,000 -- last year.'Just saying 'it wasn't my dog' will not wash any more,' Stein said."

Okay -- so -- how much to the tests cost, and who is going to pay for them?

Even if they tack it onto the fine, who is to say that the money will get back to pay for the tests? After all the money to buy those tests and pay for the testing itself isn't cheap. If DNA tests were cheap, then there would be no reason for people to go on the "Maury" show!

those tests cost around $300 I think.

It seems to me that perhaps what the town needs is a street sweeper who will go around cleaning up after the dogs like they used to have for the streets when there were horse-drawn wagons.

It would probably be cheaper too ... and hey ... if it were an officer (those you are in trouble perhaps, give them something to do while they are on paid-suspension) then they would be authorized to hand out the fines as they see it happen.